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Home > Departments > Library Dean's Office > Appendix C: Digital Library Vision Statement
The Library Digital Programs advancement of digital initiatives will focus on customer needs and expectations for digital library services. The Sheridan Libraries engages in a range of assessment activities that will delineate customer needs and preferences. While assessment represents an ongoing activity, an examination of initial observations highlights global customer expectations and library needs. Specifically, our customers seek seamless access through single sign-on authentication and authorization to the entire range of resources and services. It is worth noting the Google and DailyJolt phenomenon in this context. The Sheridan Libraries provide a flyer with the title "Why Use the Library Instead of Google." Perhaps the title should read "Why Use the Library In Addition to Google." Digital library users clearly appreciate the ease of use associated with Google. We should support efforts to integrate the richness of Sheridan Library resources into Google (or similar services). DailyJolt's website for Johns Hopkins students (http://jhu.dailyjolt.com) represents a portal-like interface that provides a range of content and services. It's worth noting that there is a link from the main page to Google, but not the Library catalog. From the Library's perspective, it has become critical for the University to play a greater role in the creation, curation, and preservation of content. There are many forces that necessitate this shift, ranging from escalating serials prices, to the growing, yet still unmet, challenges of data curation of digital science. The Virtual Observatory Project provides an excellent example of the new challenges facing Libraries. Alex Szalay, the PI of this multi-million dollar project, has asked the Library to help "manage, curate, and preserve" the data, and integrate their findings into library and e-learning systems. Digital library services should meet these expectations and needs, and guide the development of appropriate infrastructure. A repository-based digital library strategy will provide the foundation for this infrastructure. Libraries can help define policies, procedures, and practices so that faculty, students, and staff will create digital content, including data, in the least fixed, most generalized form. This content and data will be deposited into a repository layer, and then moved seamlessly into a services layer. Examples of services include (but are not limited to): - Research support
- E-learning
- eportfolios
- virtual reference
- Scholarly Communication
- e-publishing
- virtual reality environments
- Digital Content and Data Curation
- digital preservation
- digitization
The recent creation of multiple open-source systems and projects raises the possibility of developing a layered digital library infrastructure, with a repository layer at the foundation. It is essential to work with the vendor community as well. However, it is equally essential to note that "open" not only implies seamless movement of digital content, but also the ability to retrieve or export digital content without payment or (vendor-based) custom programming. Currently, faculty produce digital content, which, in some cases, is imported into e-learning systems such as WebCT, Blackboard, and eCollege. If this content is "housed" within these proprietary systems, we are compelled to pay to retrieve or export the content. There is no doubt that the e-learning systems provide a "value-added" service but, fundamentally, this arrangement is no different than our current arrangements with private publishers. With open repository-based digital libraries, we can avoid such arrangements and develop services that meet our customers' needs. Return to Integration of Digital Library Services |
